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Album Details

• Artist: American Speedway
• Album: Ship Of Fools
• Label: Prophase
• Year of Release: 2008
• ME Rating:
• Reviewed by: patchen on 2008-03-12

 

Crack open a High Life, light up a Basic, and tuned the set to WWE. American Speedway will provide the soundtrack. Part bar-band, part punk, they turn it up and turn it out with speed and nary a frill. "Ship of Fools" sounds like classic rock played with renewed sense of purpose. They're a little bit Detroit 1968, a little bit Lazy Cowgirls 1987.

Three chords at most, blues progressions amped and shredded; the band, lead by Michael "Thursby" Speedway, a vocalist who adds just enough punk snottiness to straight no songs like "One Foot In, One Foot Out," "Cocaine" and "Drinkin & Drivin'" to make them sound both classic and contemporary.

Thursby and Johnny Griswold's guitars are clearly at the center of these jams, but the rhythm section of Billy angry on bass and drummer Chris Callahan keep the bottom steady and sure.  It'll take about a half hour to get through the ten songs on the disc, but it is a juicy rockin spin nevertheless. American Speedway literally kick out the jams with style, a style that thankfully, will never go stale.

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